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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/28261683">Wrapping Presents</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/FreakyPseudWriter/pseuds/FreakyPseudWriter'>FreakyPseudWriter</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Mini Series Christmas 2020 [1]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Naruto</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Christmas, Christmas Fluff, Christmas Presents, Dogs, Domestic Fluff, Established Relationship, F/M, Fluff, Marriage Proposal, Modern Era, Presents</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-12-23</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-12-23</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-10 20:20:24</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>3,559</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/28261683</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/FreakyPseudWriter/pseuds/FreakyPseudWriter</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>This year, you potentially have a great gift for Madara, but he's - understandably - against getting a dog over the holidays due to the logical implications. Thus, you have to trick him a little bit to distract him from your real present, and you use his general dislike of Christmas presents to your advantage.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Uchiha Madara/Reader</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Mini Series Christmas 2020 [1]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/2070360</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>10</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>53</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Wrapping Presents</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Hello there! :D</p><p>I'm really happy to finally be able to do something for Christmas for once ^^ Here we have a little series, with Christmas-themed prompts and the five characters I'm writing at the moment. This is really exciting for me, and of course, they grew way out of proportions and past the plans I made ^^''</p><p>This one is based on the idea that Madara is an absolute grinch about the holidays, as well as a responsible human being and doesn't want to get "gifted" a dog for Christmas. In the fic, I make clear that they already talked about getting a dog and also that they loosely planned to do so beforehand.<br/>And I also noticed that Madara's birthday is at the 24th? Well, here we go then! Even more of a reason to start with this fic ^^<br/>Hope you guys will like it and see you all tomorrow, when I post the next part of this series! :D</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“Oh gosh, they are so cute!”</p><p>Puppies were just like that: fluffy little bundles of joy and fur. At three weeks, they started to open their eyes and look around, but as you watched them in their cot made out of blankets and a small fence, they seemed much more mobile than that. One of them even already tried to yip, but nothing more than a little whimper came out. </p><p>Sakumo carried his small son Kakashi on his hip as he watched over the cot together with you. The poor kid wasn’t sleeping well lately, which was one of the reasons Madara and you were visiting today. Poor Sakumo needed a little bit of company to avoid falling asleep. With his own human pup and the canine puppies, he certainly didn’t get much rest over the last weeks. “Yeah. Was a tough night with her. Being a rescue didn’t make her the most trusting when I hopped into the nesting area here to help her.” A yawn interrupted him before he could continue.</p><p>Wordlessly, you moved out of your crouch and reached out to your family friend, gesturing to him to give you Kakashi. Sakumo never looked happier as he thrusted Kakashi into your arms, who instantly started to fuss. He was such a daddy’s boy through and through. </p><p>While you gently rocked Kakashi back to a peaceful half-slumber, Sakumo breathed out like a gigantic stone had just been lifted from his shoulders.</p><p>“Thank you for coming, by the way." He shook his head. The lines around his eyes were deeper than you had ever seen them. “And sorry for Kakashi. He didn’t eat anything bad, so I don’t get why he puked on Madara as soon as I opened the door.”</p><p>“No worries. The big grump deserves it anyway. Probably scared Kakashi with his dark, sullen face.”</p><p>“Did anything annoy him?”</p><p>At the innocent question, you couldn’t help but to bark out a sharp laugh. “Just every little store which plays Christmas songs already. You know how he is. He will get over it.”</p><p>But Sakumo didn’t look convinced. The older man was gnawing at his bottom lip. His eyes were jumping back and forth between the puppies with their sleeping mother and you, who was gently bouncing Kakashi up and down on your hip. “You are together now… for four years?”</p><p>“Yes…” You had no idea where he wanted to go with this question. “Why?”</p><p>“And you never talked about… marriage? Or something?”</p><p>“We just moved into one flat. It’s fine how it is right now.”</p><p>“But…” Sakumo paused when the door swung open and Madara stepped in, with his hair tied up into a ponytail and his hands drying off on his jeans-cladded thighs. </p><p>“Little brat.” Yet, when Madara looked at Kakashi and you, his eyes spoke volumes about the softer feelings burning inside his heart. “Puking on my shoes as soon as I step into the house. Nice welcome.”</p><p>When he walked towards you and his eyes wandered over the rescue dog with the six puppies sleeping alongside her, you thought you saw something standing in his eyes… Longing, maybe? A little spark of joy?</p><p>But then, the moment was over and Madara was close enough to pat Kakashi ever so gently on the head and kiss your cheek. “Hey.”</p><p> </p><p>His rough whisper so close to your ears was heavenly. A little shiver wandered down your spine, his voice tingling on your skin as Madara withdrew, only to look at the puppies again. “So… they look good. Are they healthy as well, Sakumo?”</p><p>“Yes, thankfully.” Sakumo sighed out. “Though, I have no idea what to do with them. I already have seven dogs outside, plus the mother. I can’t handle training six puppies while I already have Bull and Pakkun on my hands. I swear, these two are constantly up to mischief.”</p><p>“You will give them up for adoption?” you asked and watched how the mother licked one of the puppies with a white spot right around the left eye over its small head. </p><p>Sakumo nodded. “No other choice but to do that. Though, I will only allow people to adopt after Christmas. I don’t want to worry if they were abandoned a few weeks after the holidays or not.”</p><p>“That’s probably for the best.” Your attention returned to Madara. Your boyfriend was staring again—at the puppies—and now the longing and oh-so-innocent joy were clear on his face. </p><p>Did he ever own a dog? You couldn’t remember. You couldn’t remember if he ever mentioned owning a dog, but you were pretty sure that he would like to. His eyes said so much about his desires, and he wasn’t even aware of it. For someone who was always running around with a perpetual frown on his face, his eyes were ridiculously expressive.</p><p>A dog, huh…</p><p>In theory, it was possible. The flat you two shared for a few months now was pet-friendly. There would be enough space, and the both of you would have enough time to train the dog properly, and walk and play enough with the dog. But was it right? Sakumo had a point after all: many dogs were abandoned after Christmas because people got them as gifts and didn’t realize how much work was needed to properly care for a living, breathing animal. </p><p>“Madara…” Carefully, you touched his elbow. “Do you like dogs?”</p><p>“I mean…” He sighed. “Yeah. They are pretty cute.”</p><p>“We could…” With your free hand, you gestured over to the puppies, but Madara instantly shook his head. </p><p>“You won’t get me a dog for Christmas.”</p><p>“Then, for your birthday?”</p><p>“Semantics. No, no dog for Christmas or my birthday. A dog isn’t a good present, it’s a living being and getting a dog shouldn’t be taken lightly.”</p><p>“Funny. I thought the same thing.” You shifted Kakashi to your other hip. Gods, the small boy was way heavier than he looked. “But you want a dog?”</p><p>Madara’s face twisted into a mix of all kinds of emotions. You couldn’t even begin to name all of them, but the most prominent would be doubt and hope.</p><p>“Yes,” he finally mumbled, eyes never leaving the small puppies, “someday.”</p><p>Well, that was settled. One look at Sakumo, who could read you like an open book when it came to stuff like this, and he rolled his eyes. But nevertheless, he subtly nodded.</p><p>Nice. Now, you only needed to keep this a secret from Madara. And oh boy, did you already have a little plan in your head to make him go crazy and never think about the potential present for the entire time the holidays were closing in.</p><p>Madara’s dislike for Christmas would only help with that.</p><p> </p><p>~ X ~</p><p> </p><p>As soon as you brought the unwrapped presents for your family inside the living room, Madara scoffed at the arms full of little nick-nacks: some books and toys for the younger members of your extended family. One raised eyebrow at your boyfriend and you dropped everything on the large wooden table standing in the middle of the open living room and assembled all the needed materials.</p><p>
  <em>Scissors: check.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Tape: check.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Wrapping paper printed in wonderfully cheesy Christmas themes: check.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Big, colorful, glittery, sparkly bows and ribbons: check.</em>
</p><p>“You know.” He vanished behind the screen of his laptop again. “Christmas presents are just a waste of space.”</p><p>“Are they?” Unbothered, you started to wrap up the first gift. “Well, I don’t think so.”</p><p>“They are. The Christmas business is mostly the only business keeping all the stores afloat.”</p><p>“Okay.”</p><p>“It’s capitalism in its purest form.”</p><p>“That might be.” Calmly, you started to cut up the wrapping paper.</p><p>“You’re aware,” Madara growled, “that all the presents you carefully selected now will likely end up in the trash can or will be exchanged for store credit.”</p><p>“That might happen as well.”</p><p>Your calm responses made Madara even more pissed at the supposed mistakes you were about to make. </p><p>“You don’t need to,” he continued, moving his laptop aside again and standing up from the couch, “give them anything. Christmas is about being together with your family and friends.”</p><p>“I’m aware.”</p><p>“Then, why are you doing this!?” </p><p>“Because I can and want to.” </p><p>You already were heavily aware of Madara’s dislike for Christmas. Well, not necessarily his dislike for the holidays itself, but the “unhinged usage of capitalism to pull even the last bits of money out of poor people’s pockets for things nobody truly needs” (one of his rants he already released in the first week of November, when the first Christmas song reached his ears inside a supermarket). </p><p> </p><p>Thus: the genius-like plan to wrap Christmas presents right in front of him, right here, in the living room of your shared flat. Madara who had been working from home at the moment, relaxing in his sweatpants and long-sleeved shirt, was hard at work even during the jolly holiday when he wasn’t busy taking apart your Christmas decorations with his eyes. </p><p>And now, this. His dark eyes were transfixed on the wrapping paper and the different presents as he closed the distance, still scowling and glaring at you, the tape, the first already-wrapped-up present, then back at you.</p><p>When he reached the very edge of the table, the man crossed his arms over his chest while his scowl only deepened. “I hope you didn’t get me a present.”</p><p>Now, it was your turn to raise your eyebrows. “Why not?”</p><p>“Because I don’t want a present!”</p><p>“You do not want a present at Christmas.”</p><p>“Yes. I do not.”</p><p>“From your long-time girlfriend…”</p><p>“Mhmm…”</p><p>“On our fourth Christmas celebration together…”</p><p>“Yes.”</p><p>“Where we are spending Christmas for the first time in our shared home…”</p><p>“Yeah.”</p><p>“When I bought presents for your brother, your good friend Hashirama, your nephews and cousins?”</p><p>Now, it seemed to dawn on Madara where you were going. His spiky hair deflated the tiniest bit and his scowl… Oh, his scowl. It was glorious. The scowl wavered, the dark glare softened the tiniest bit and then, with a flinch, he pulled himself together again. </p><p>“No.”</p><p>With a little grin, you leaned back into your chair. “Yes.”</p><p>“You didn’t!”</p><p>“Oh, I sure as hell did.”</p><p>“You can’t just do that!” He threw his hands into the hair, spitting and hissing like a feral cat. “We never buy christmas presents for each other!”</p><p>“Well, maybe this year I wanted to get you one.”</p><p>“I don’t have a present for you though!”</p><p>“I figured that much.”</p><p>“Let me know what it is, then.”</p><p>“Why?”</p><p>“I need to match the price of the present so there’s no misbalance!” </p><p>“Why would there be a misbalance?”</p><p> </p><p>You still were as calm as ever. All of this—the struggling, the hissy fit, the disgruntled demands and orders—all of this you expected. Not so much the explanation he apparently needed for your present. </p><p>You merely cocked your head to the side. Deeming this question with any kind of reaction or answer was beneath you. </p><p>“I need to know,” Madara repeated, like he was talking to a child, “the price of your present so I can get something of equal worth.”</p><p>“That’s bullshit.”</p><p>“It isn’t! Otherwise, it wouldn’t be fair!”</p><p>“You’re not serious. Oh god, you <em>are</em> serious.”</p><p>“Of course I am, when you get me an unneeded present!”</p><p>“If it’s not needed,” you shrugged, “then I don’t have to tell you anything about your present. And good luck, I already wrapped it and hid it around the house, you will never find it!”</p><p>With your plan set in motion, you left all the non-wrapped presents on the table to storm away in a faked fit of rage and fury. Inwardly though, you were gloating and cooing, especially so when you dared to look over your shoulder for a mere second and watched how Madara stared at the table with its presents, beautifully colored wrapping paper and the many, many golden and silver ribbons. </p><p> </p><p>~ X ~</p><p> </p><p>Madara was a prickly, self-centered, sometimes straightforward idiot. Thus, he needed a wake-up call once in a while, especially when it came to Christmas. You didn’t want him to suddenly be a Christmas lover, by no means, no. Just… the tiniest bit of excitement, a little bit less grinch-behavior, and a lot, lot less complaining about the capitalism of Christmas. </p><p>Therefore, the little “test”. You wanted to see if there was anything childish left in Madara, like some kind of curiosity and excitement over the sheer mystery of Christmas. Maybe it was the not-knowing, the surprise, or the joy hopefully coming out of these presents. That was what you were searching for, and thankfully, you found it. </p><p>Madara lasted two days. Only two short days, then you walked into your own bedroom and caught Madara snooping through your closet. You paused in the doorframe and watched, with a dawning smile on your face, how Madara cursed and groaned under his breath while trying to crawl deeper and deeper into your closet. Gods, he was almost hidden between all your summer jackets, coats and shirts hanging from the coat hangers.</p><p>“Your present isn’t there.”</p><p>Seeing him jerk out of the chaos and bumping his head at the doors was funny as fuck. Madara was wonderfully adorable in his disgruntled embarrassment, as though he was caught with his hands inside the cookie jar so to speak. Still grinning at him, you leaned against the doorframe and crossed your arms over your chest, all the while your boyfriend sputtered out, trying to make excuses over excuses to exactly why he was combing through your closet.</p><p>“I wasn’t searching—! You’re totally mistaken there, I have no idea what you’re talking about! I was just…”</p><p>“Looking for the present?”</p><p>“No!” Madara snapped, already pouting like a child. Right there on the ground, arms shoring him, legs crossed. “I wasn't!”</p><p>“Good that you didn’t look for it, then. There’s no chance I would’ve hidden it inside the closet. Too easy.” Still grinning, you left the bedroom and left Madara right there on the carpet, too stunned and too confused to retort. </p><p>Over the next few days, you decided to watch Madara closely, but didn’t make it too obvious. And oh, the outcome was glorious. Everytime you entered a room with the tiniest hint of a hiding place, Madara would be there and eyeing every possible nook and cranny. Sometimes, you also found him retracting his hands out of closets, cabinets or cupboards, looking as innocent as one could get. </p><p>It took him another week until he broke down.</p><p>You were cuddled up by his side on the couch, kind of not-watching the ongoing movie but enjoying Madara’s proximity too much to stand up and do something else. Your head was leaning against his shoulder, careful of his wild hair tamed again in a ponytail. His hand and yours were entangled and laying on his thigh, with fingers fiddling with each other once in a while. </p><p>Then, suddenly…</p><p>“What is my Christmas present?”</p><p>For a moment, you allowed the victory to pulse through your body. Nothing could stop the triumphant grin on your face as you turned your head towards him and tried to control your wide grin, trying to turn it down to a bare minimum. “Oh? Your present? I don’t know what you’re talking about.”</p><p>“Bullshit!” Suddenly, you found yourself pinned down into the couch, Madara hovering above you with an impish sparkle in his dark eyes. He wasn’t seriously angry, just pissed with your insistent silence and the obvious tricks you were playing on him. And maybe, just maybe, he was a tiny bit intrigued with the mystery surrounding the present, especially after you made such a big deal out of it. </p><p> </p><p>It wasn’t your fault he was adorable. His long ponytail fell over his shoulder and brushed over your skin. His hands were right by your sides, thumbs gracing your ribs and making you tremble faintly. Gods, sometimes you forgot how intense Madara could be. Moments like this reminded you of the way he had been when you met him; always a bit uncontrolled, a bit unhinged, and ready to explode any minute. </p><p>“Alright, alright, alright… Damn, you drive a hard bargain here.” You pressed against his chest until Madara let go, grumbling to himself and eyeing you warily. When you stood up and walked out to the entrance area, you heard how he stood up and started to follow, clearly confused about the entire ordeal. </p><p>“Where are you going?” he asked. “Why are you getting dressed?”</p><p>“I’m getting your present." You shrugged your coat on and tried to toe on your boots at the same time, “Did you really think I would keep it here? Where you possibly would find it?”</p><p>“You minx, you let me search at home on purpose—” </p><p>“Of course. Now, come on! Grab your shoes and a jacket, we’re going for a little trip!”</p><p>“Why can’t you just tell me!”</p><p>Giggling, you wagged your finger at him. “Now, where would be the fun in that?”</p><p>The drive to Sakumo’s house was thankfully spent in silence. You forced Madara to wear a blindfold, so he wouldn’t know where you were going with him. Only when you rang the bell of Sakumo’s house, Madara spoke up with his head cocked to the side, trying to make out where he was just by sound alone.</p><p>“Wait, I know that door bell… (Y/N), Are we at Sakumo’s?”</p><p>“…”</p><p>But like a goddamn bloodhound, Madara seemed to sense what was going on. His growl vibrated in your chest, dangerous and sexy and making you wish you were anywhere else but here. <em>“(Y/N)...”</em></p><p>“Yes?”</p><p>“You did <em>not</em>—!”</p><p>Thankfully, Sakumo opened the door before Madara could finish his sentence. Nevertheless, you could almost feel him seething by your side as you quickly passed by Sakumo who was always wearing a cheerful smile. “Hey there! I’m here for the thing. You understand?”</p><p>Not waiting for Sakumo’s answer, you dragged Madara with you, inside the house. Ignoring his struggles and his already-forming protests, you pushed him into the room where the mother dog and her puppies were resting. The puppies were even cuter than you remembered, all wagging tails and high barks when you entered with Madara and Sakumo in tow. </p><p>“Taadaaaa~!” Quickly, you got rid of Madara’s blindfold and watched how he blinked and tried to focus on the little puppies crawling all over his feet and yours. “Surprise!”</p><p>You didn’t expect a huge display of happiness nor a great celebration. What you didn’t expect was the instant hiss cutting through the air, closely accompanied by “I told you, do not give me a dog! Did you even listen to me?”</p><p>“No, I didn’t listen to you. No, I’m just offering you the gift of a dog, not guaranteeing it. I don’t want to pressure you into this. I merely talked to Sakumo about the chance of maybe adopting one of the puppies, if you were okay with it.”</p><p>“Maybe?”</p><p>“Maybe.” You nodded while reaching out to take Madara’s hand. “Just maybe. If you want to.”</p><p>You were thankful that Madara didn’t reject your hand. Instead of pushing you away, his fingers closed around yours and squeezed. Still wary of his reaction, you leaned your head against his shoulder while watching the puppies jump around their mother. “The other option would be a nice, calm dinner cooked by me with every ounce of my cooking talent.”</p><p>“Then I will happily choose the dog over that incoming disaster.”</p><p>“Hey!”</p><p>“You had it coming.”</p><p>“I know.”</p><p>Together, you looked at the playing, unruly puppies; together, you held hands while knowing Madara was swayed by the cutest sights of the year.</p><p> </p><p>~ X ~</p><p> </p><p>“If I had known this… I wouldn’t have gotten a present for you.”</p><p>“Oh, come on Madara. You like my non-present.”</p><p>“Doesn’t matter.”</p><p>“Oh, it does. Now, can I see my present? After I showed you yours?”</p><p>“Wasn’t it just a non-present a second ago?”</p><p>“Don’t be such a grinch. Please?”</p><p>“Fine…”</p><p>“...”</p><p>“...”</p><p>“You’re not serious.”</p><p>“I am.”</p><p>“You had that in your sweatpants?”</p><p>“For around a week now.”</p><p>“In your <em>sweatpants</em>, Madara!”</p><p>“It was safe! We didn’t even leave the flat anyway!”</p><p>“Then, why did you have this—” You raised the small box right into his face, burning in anger and hand trembling so much you nearly dropped the box into the pile of puppies. “—in your sweatpants! Something like this...!”</p><p>“Are you saying no?”</p><p>“Of course not!”</p><p>“So…” Madara’s eyes twinkled. You wanted nothing more than to wipe the stupid grin off his face, but your heart was racing and sheer happiness was flooding through your body. “You’re saying yes?”</p><p>“Of course, you absolute clown of a man, you!” You didn’t care anymore. With enough strength to nearly knock you two off your feet, you flung yourself at Madara, laughing and crying and a little bit overthrown by the quick development of everything. </p><p>“Thank the gods,” Madara grumbled into your ear, one hand quick enough to catch the flung-and-forgotten falling box and the other around your waist as you tried to hide your grin in his neck, “otherwise, I really have to think about accepting your present.”</p><p>“And I have to think about accepting yours!”</p><p>“You can’t take it back. Not anymore.”</p><p>And you won’t.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Biggest kudos to Chisie, the lovely soul and hard worker T^T9</p></blockquote></div></div>
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